Rotten Apple
by chocolate-sugar
Summary: All three Graysons fell that night. But only two graves were ever filled. Richard Graysons body was never found. Until now that is and, trust me, its not as simple as it sounds. Especially when Young Justice get involved... AU kinda. First Fic. Disclaimer: i don't own YJ. never have, never will.
1. Chapter 1

**EDIT: This chapter was revised 22/01/2014 **

**There are a few changes so if you read it before this date i suggest reading it again ;) Chapter two is currently being revised too, it should be finished soon! Then chapter three will be out, i promise.**

**The reason for these edits you ask? Well i have a lovely new Beta! Handmaiden of Awesomeness is her name and she's, well, awesome! She has really helped me out with everything! We're currently developing the story and it's going really well, i'm getting very excited!  
**

**Again, a big big BIG thank you to my Beta '****Handmaiden of Awesomeness'! She has put a lot of effort into this and i can't thank her enough!**

* * *

The scene seemed to slow down in an instant as the six figures tumbled towards the ground. The faces of joy amongst the crowd turned to those of shock and horror. Cheerful music of the circus bellowed out, un-wavered by the sickening crunch that followed their downfall.

Pain. That's all he could recognise. It hurt so much. What had he just been doing? He couldn't remember. Wasn't his trapeze debut with his parents today? That's right, if he didn't get up soon he'd be late. If he didn't get up soon, mum would scold him and threaten to not let him perform. He'd waited for this for so long, he'd get up soon. He only wanted five more minutes. Just five more, then he'd get up…

* * *

Police Commissioner Jim Gordon arrived home late that night. It had been a long and tiresome one and he desperately needed some sleep to clear his head.

He flung his coat over the back of a chair at the kitchen table before opening the small fridge and promptly shutting it again, unable to raise any type of appetite for the food it contained. Especially after tonight, it just felt wrong.

A shadow swept across the far corner of the room near the window. Gordon swiftly pulled his gun out and aimed it at the shadowed figure.

"Show yourself!" he ordered to the darkness. A foot stepped out, the form slowly revealed itself to be none other than Batman. Gordon let out an annoyed groan, still holding up his gun, "Can't you use the door like a normal person? Or call maybe? This _is_ my house in case you hadn't noticed."

"The Graysons." Batman said, ignoring Gordon "What do you know?"

Jim Gordon lowered his gun, but kept it at his side, ready to use if necessary.

"Not much." he said "Ropes were unstable and they snapped. Karla Grayson and her son John died instantly. Her husband Rick was in Intensive Care, in a coma last I heard. John and Mary Grayson died on impact. Their kid, Richard, died not too soon after. An accident … or at least I thought it was until _you_ showed up."

"The ropes." the vigilante stated "There was acid on them, sabotage."

The commissioner stared for a second in disbelief "How'd you-" he began, but then stopped "Never mind, of course you know. But that's not the weirdest part." Gordon loosened his hold on his gun and raised a hand to his face rubbing his eyes beneath his glasses, a grim expression crossing his features.

He looked up at Batman, locking his gaze on the white slits "The kid's body, it's missing."

Batman's glare sharpened "How?" he said, the annoyance clear in his voice.

"That's the thing, we don't know." Gordon began, placing his hand on his face again "The bodies were delivered to the Police Department's morgue after the crime scene was cleared. The cameras cut for five minutes, an hour after delivery, and the body was gone. Not a trace of it ever being there except for the camera footage from beforehand. Nobody was seen entering or leaving, it just-" Gordon looked up to find batman no longer there "-disappeared…"

Gordon grabbed the nearest kitchen chair and collapsed into it, placing his gun back in its holster. He placed his head in his hands, thinking things through. Why did this have to happen along with everything else? Who goes to so much trouble to steal one kid's body? He grimaced, realising there was probably some freak or another in Gotham capable of it. Was it the saboteur? Did the kid's body contain some evidence they'd missed?

"Dad?" a small voice called out, ending his train of thought.

Gordon looked up to find his daughter in the doorway of the kitchen, "Barbara," his voice softened, "What are you doing out of bed? Have a bad dream?"

"No!" she said defiantly "I'm too old for nightmares, you just woke me up!" the ten year old red head crossed her arms and pouted at her father.

He chuckled softly before walking over to her and sweeping her up in his arms "Come on sweet heart, I'll tuck you in again."

* * *

Batman kept looking long after the Gotham Police Department called off the case. He came up with no leads to the murderer or the case of the missing body of Richard Grayson. Soon the family's case was overshadowed by larger events and placed to one side, but never forgotten. Batman carried the guilt on his shoulders. Another family torn apart and there was nothing to show for it. History likes to repeat itself.

* * *

**Another edit: Now i didn't know this myself but in the YJ ****universe Dick's Family included his Uncle, Aunt and Cousin as well. There is more information on the YJ wiki if you're interested ;)**

**(old A/N): I felt compelled to write all of a sudden, i'm usually more of a reader, so mistakes are likely.**

**I'm not entirely sure where i'm going with this, if you have any ideas please tell me xD i mean, i know the basic plot but ideas would help inflate the story a bit ;)**

**Please point out any mistakes.**

**~cs**


	2. Chapter 2

**EDIT: This chapter was revised 03/02/2014**

**There are quite A LOT of changes so if you read it before this date i suggest reading it again ;)**

**Another big thank you to my Beta! I don't know what i'd do without her!**

* * *

Ch. 1

_Five years later_

* * *

_"Hey, Superboy," The clone looked towards Kid Flash, his eyes widening as he noticed what the speedster was trying to bring to his attention._

_"That's…"_

_"Yep, the moon."_

_Superboy's face was one of sheer bewilderment. The real thing was nothing compared to the pre-implanted pictures in his head. It stood out boldly on its dark back drop that was the night sky, it was beautiful. Suddenly, he was aware of everything around him for the first time. The cool night breeze, the soft buzz of the street lights, the stars. _

_As he became more engrossed in seeing the moon for the first time, he noticed a small black spec become larger and larger. Even with his enhanced sight Superboy squinted to make sure he was really seeing what he thought he was._

_Any doubt was cast aside as the figure came closer and Kid Flash spoke again._

_"Wow. And Superman." Kid Flash looked towards Superboy, who was focused entirely on the oncoming figure "Do we keep our promises or what?"_

_"Not just Superman." Speedy growled crossing his arms. He directed a sharp glare towards Superman as the presence of the rest of the League became apparent "Looks like the whole League decided to pay us a visit."_

_They all looked around as all the Justice League members surrounded them. Speedy glared at Green Arrow as he was lowered with the rest of the non-flying members on Green Lantern's platform. Most of the League kept on the ground above the crevice created by the collapse of the Cadmus lab. That set them at the perfect position to look down on the four sidekicks. _

_Superman landed in the crevice. He was followed by the group's mentors with the addition of Batman and Black Canary. They eyed the group, trying to assess what was happening._

_It was Superboy who made the first move. He started from the back of the group and headed towards Superman. He lifted the top half of his ripped outfit back into place, revealing the symbol printed on it. Superman's symbol._

_The man of steel's eyes widened in disbelief but it didn't take long for Superman to recover from his initial shock and his features hardened. _

_Batman appeared soundlessly behind Superman, before speaking abruptly._

_"Is that what I think it is?" It was more of statement than a question._

_"He doesn't like being called an 'it'." Kid Flash said warily, edging forward._

_Superboy met Superman's eyes. The excitement of meeting his 'original' left him in an instant, the rejection was clear enough. He glanced down toward his chest. Letting go of the fabric, he met Superman's eyes once again._

_"I'm Superman's clone." Superboy threw each word out like a challenge, squaring up to Superman._

_Shock and confusion crossed the faces of the members of the Justice League. All except one, of course._

_Batman looked towards the teens, watching them silently for a moment._

_"Start talking." _

* * *

_Batman barely said a word when they explained their story, merely nodding his head slightly or asking short, to-the-point, questions. The other Justice League members who heard them glanced at the four protégés every once in a while, clearly disturbed by some of the facts._

_The darkly clad hero talked to the Leaguers, then returned back to the young heroes. Flash, Aquaman and Green Arrow trailed behind him. _

_"Cadmus will be investigated. All fifty-two levels of it, however-"_

_"You should've called!" Flash cut in, the distress clear as his emotions showed through his red cowl._

"However."_ Batman began again, "Results aside, you abused your access to League systems, disobeyed direct orders, and endangered lives. You will _not _be doing this again."_

_Surprisingly, Speedy had remained silent slowly steaming as the conversation progressed. He had been staring down The Leaguers, but on hearing Batman's words he snapped. _

_"Oh, I think we _will,"_ he snarled, glaring at his mentor in front of him, then at the younger heroes next to him, "Or at least _I_ will. In case you forgot, I'm out. You have no say in what I do."_

_"Speedy please," Green arrow stepped forward placing a hand on his student's shoulder. "You didn't actually mean that, did you? Come on lets-"_

_The young archer gripped his former mentor's wrist tightly, wrenched it away, and resisted the very strong urge to punch the man in the face. _

_"I was very serious and I meant every word." Turning away from Green Arrow, Speedy looked towards Aqualad, Kid Flash and Superboy once more._

_"If you're going to just take this then be my guest. But I'm not about to be ordered around,_ used,_ like some 'side kick'." With a final glare in the Leagues direction, he stalked away angrily, his limp forgotten._

_Green Arrow started after him but Aquaman stopped him, placing a hand on his shoulder and shaking his head slightly. If he went after Speedy now there was going to be nothing but trouble. _

_The hero of Star city looked dejected. He didn't seem to know what to do and lowered his head in defeat._

_Speedy's outburst created a tense air among the circle of heroes. Aqualad stepped forward with a determined look on his face._

_"I apologise, but Speedy is right. We will be doing this again."_

_"Aqualad," His king warned him, "Stand down."_

_"Apologies my King, but no. We did good work tonight. The work you trained us to do." He motioned towards Kid Flash and Suberboy, "Together we defied the odds and forged something powerful, important. A team."_

_"If this is about your treatment at the hall then-" Flash began._

_"It's not." The young speedster cut his mentor off, "Can't you see we're ready? All the training and the work. What was it all for if not this?"_

_"Why should we even let them tell us what to do? Maybe Speedy was right." Superboy crossed his arm defiantly. "It's simple really, __**either get on board or get out of the way**__."_

* * *

Wally was slumped on a couch in Mount Justice, their 'new' base of operations, and was shoveling down a plate of Miss Martian's cookies with an absent look on his face.

It had been a week since the Cadmus episode. A whole week! And they hadn't had a single mission to go on. To say Wally was bored would be an understatement, he was a speedster and speedsters don't like to sit still for long. A week of no crime fighting, to Wally, was the closest thing to torture he could think of.

Sighing he looked around the room for anything to distract himself with. He eyed Aqualad, who sat in the furthest chair away, reading an Atlantian scripture on the magic arts.

A clatter of pans brought his attention to Miss Martian, or Megan as she insisted being called, who was in the kitchen trying out new recipes. A flirtatious grin spread across his face as he watched the beautiful green girl work. Man, was she pretty. Megan glanced up and caught Wally's eye, smiling brightly at him. He smirked back at her and winked, before returning to his plate of treats.

After eating the majority of the cookies he turned to look at Superboy, who was staring at the static playing on the TV.

"Hey, Supes."

Superboy only turned his head and glared at the red head causing him to shift uncomfortably. He knew Superboy wouldn't hurt him, (probably) but would it kill the guy to smile once in a while? Wally swallowed before continuing "Uh, mind if I change the channel?"

Superboy's glare intensified

"Well, I mean, statics great an' all but you've been watching it for three hours straight." Superboy only grunted in what could be interpreted as a form of agreement, before handing Wally the remote.

Quickly accepting the remote, Wally flicked through the local channels at lightning speed, a string of nonsensical words erupting from each passing channel. He continued doing this until he stopped on one particular channel. Sirens and frightened shouts blasted from the TV. A news reporter appeared in front of a row of armed police officers who all faced a small building.

"The situation inside the building remains unclear," she stated "I do, however, have official reports that this _is_ a hostage situation. Five people are currently being held inside the vicinity by an unidentified man. A second figure has been spotted but an exact description and their involvement is yet to be confirmed. A demand through radio has been made for several thousand dollars. More on this situation later as we-" Wally had never stood up at such a speed in his life. He knocked his forgotten food onto the floor, a determined grin spreading across his face.

"Hey, guys!" everyone turned towards him, Wally motioned towards the TV, "Looks like we just got our first mission."

* * *

The room was large and hollow, but still had a grand feel to it. It was decorated in a traditional fashion, a detailed chandelier hanging at the centre. It was dimly lit and the room showed no signs of windows. Nine formally dressed people sat along a rectangular table, four on either side and an older woman at the head. Two young children, a girl and a boy, knelt on the floor beside the table playing with small faceless dolls. They all wore a plain white mask, engraved like an owl, which smoothed over all features except for their hollowed eyes. They seemed to see everything and pierce through any kind of darkness you could possibly try to hide behind.

Their deadly gaze was focused on a lone dark figure that stood at the opposite end of the table, the same mask covering his face. As frightening as their gaze was, the figure seemed unaffected by it, as if immune.

"You now understand you mission, Talon." It was the woman at the head of the table who spoke, the statement directed towards the shadow at the foot of the table.

"Of course." The boy stated.

"Good. We do not usually associate with the Shadows; however, it is necessary for your mission. Do not disappoint us. I need not remind you of what failure will result in." The last sentence was spoken with what seemed to be light amusement from the woman. However, if the boy noticed her tone he did not acknowledge it.

"No," he replied again, raising his masked face to meet hers, _"masters."_

The woman smirked through her mask "Very well. Go then, Gray Son of Gotham."

The boy placed his right fist over his heart, bowing slightly, before disappearing through the hall's main doors.

* * *

The young girl from the main hall sat atop a tall building, her legs swinging back and forth over the edge. In the gloomy night, her blonde, curly, locks caught the breeze and swayed. She hummed a childish tune whilst watching the shadows of the city move below her.

_Beware The Court of Owls that watches all the time_

_ Ruling Gotham from a shadow perch behind granite and lime. _

_They watch you at your hearth; they watch you in your bed, _

_Speak not a whispered word of them or they'll send The Talon for your __**head.**_

* * *

**EDIT: **

**YESSS FINALLY DONE WITH EDITS!**

**This story is officially up and running! **

**My Beta and I have been working really hard to get this done and i'm quite proud to say the least.**

**We've been brainstorming and forming lots of plot stuff and things...**

**ANYWAY, thank you to everyone who has favourited, followed and/or reviewed. I really appreciate it (It keeps me writing haha).**

**I promise the wait between each chapter will (eventually) decrease. Just gotta get things going.**

**Another BIG thank you to my Beta (You're awesome!)**

**I guess I'll see you all in chapter three ;)**

**(OLD A/N)**

Oh man. Oh man, oh man, oh man.

FIRST OF ALL: THANKYOU! To everybody who reviewed, added the story to their favorites and/or followed! I felt like a kid on Christmas, you're all awesome!

I'm trying my best to write this, sorry if I'm rusty with my story telling and pacing ill adjust soon, promise!

I hope this met everyone's expectations with where the story is heading :s I have many plot twists to come yet so don't let this chapter scare you away if it's not what you expected ;)

Again thank you to everyone, especially those who reviewed and told me what they thought. (I'll try to reply to y'all asap :) )

ALSO: plot ideas are still welcome and if you see a mistake I'd really appreciate it if you would point it out

So tell me, who suspected the court had an involvement from chapter one? ;)

**~CS**


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